Friday, October 14, 2005

Oil spills, climate change spell doom for British birds

Research led by Professor Tim Birkhead of the University of Sheffield shows for the first time that major oil spills double the mortality rate of adult guillemots in Britain. Surprising fact is that pollution occurs, hundreds of kilometres from the birds` breeding grounds. The researchers also found a direct link between a warmer North Atlantic climate and a higher mortality rate among British guillemots. November issue of the journal Ecology Letters carries the details of this study.